South Africans start voting in general election

South Africans across the nation are queuing up on early Wednesday morning to cast ballots that will determine which party is to rule the country in the next five years.

At a voting station in Crawford College in Northern Johannesburg, many people arrived early to make their mark and have their say. At 7:50 a.m. local time (0550 GMT), 50 minutes after the official opening time, there have already been hundreds of people queuing up.

An Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) official assists a man to cast his vote at Rakgatla secondary school polling station during South Africa's national and provincial elections on May 8, 2019 in Marikana. [Photo: AFP]

Voters said it only took 10 minutes to vote, and the whole process was quick and efficient.

However, not all voting stations across the nation opened on time, according to the Independent Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC).

Up till 8 o'clock in the morning, 10 percent of the 22,924 voting stations remained closed, the IEC said.

The election, the country's sixth general election since the first such by the nation in 1994, has attracted 26.7 million registered voters.

People cast their votes during the sixth general election at Hitekani Primary School in Soweto, on May 8, 2019. [Photo: AFP]

A poll by the Institute of Race Relations has shown that among the 76 parties running for the election, the current ruling party the African National Congress will receive about 53 percent of the vote nationally, being the first choice for most voters.

The final results of the election will be pronounced Saturday.